Peter Liguori

The following is a letter sent Thursday from new Tribune Co. CEO Peter Liguori to Tribune employees, reproduced here in its entirety. Hello, Today, I accepted the job as CEO of Tribune Company. It is an honor to be given the opportunity to work with all of you and to lead Tribune forward. I am excited about what lies ahead. I am also aware that most of you don't know me. While email isn't the ideal way to introduce myself, please allow me to tell you a bit about why I took this job, what my priorities are and what I expect to accomplish by working together.

SHREVEPORT, La. - A woodsy stretch of Willow Lake Farm, just outside this city, has been painstakingly built to look like a 17 t h century New England village, filled with shops and houses with steep-pitched roofs and drab clapboard exteriors. Milling about nearby are women in elaborate capes and cinched dresses, and men clad in peasant shirts and heavy coats. It's all textbook quaint - until you see the towering gallows at the center of town. This is the setting for "Salem," the new TV series from Tribune Co.'s WGN America set in the Massachusetts village that was the scene of notorious Colonial witch trials.

Peter Liguori, a former top executive at News Corp. and Discovery Communications, is expected to be named as the new chief executive of Tribune Co., parent of the Los Angeles Times and KTLA-TV Los Angeles, after the company emerges from bankruptcy, a person familiar with the matter said. An official announcement of Liguori's hiring is not expected until after Tribune emerges from bankruptcy and formally names a new board of directors. A big step in that direction occurred Friday when the Federal Communications Commission approved a transfer of the Tribune broadcast licenses to Oaktree Capital Management; Angelo, Gordon & Co.; and JPMorgan Chase & Co., the soon-to-be owners of the media conglomerate.

Tribune Co. has reached an agreement with Sony Corp. of America to acquire Gracenote Inc., a music data company. Tribune, the parent of the Los Angeles Times, will pay $170 million for the company in a deal expected to close within the first quarter of 2014. In a statement Monday, Tribune said it will combine Gracenote with Tribune Media Services, which provides television and movie metadata. "As we strategically invest in growth areas, increase our scale, and extend our core businesses, Gracenote is an ideal addition to our portfolio," Peter Liguori, Tribune's chief executive, said in an email to Tribune's staff. "Bringing together Gracenote with Tribune Media Services will create one of the largest entertainment metadata companies in the world.” ON LOCATION: Where the cameras roll Gracenote, which is headquartered in Emeryville, Calif., was bought by Sony in 2008.

In its first board of directors meeting since emerging from a protracted bankruptcy, Tribune Co. named investor Bruce Karsh as chairman and veteran entertainment executive Peter Liguori as chief executive. Eddy Hartenstein, who served as chief executive for almost two years, remained on the board and will continue as publisher and chief executive of the Los Angeles Times, the largest of eight daily Tribune newspapers. He also will act as special advisor to Liguori. Karsh is president of Oaktree Capital Management, the private equity firm that now owns 23%, the biggest single stake, in Tribune.

Peter Liguori, a former top executive at News Corp. and Discovery Communications, is expected to be named chief executive of Tribune Co. after the company emerges from bankruptcy, according to people familiar with the matter. Liguori is in advanced conversations with incoming owners, according to people who requested anonymity. An official announcement is expected after Tribune emerges from bankruptcy and names a new board of directors, which could occur as early as next month. Quiz: The week in business Tribune cleared a final regulatory hurdle Friday when the Federal Communications Commission granted waivers that pave the way for transfers of Tribune broadcast licenses to the eventual new owners of the company, a group led by Oaktree Capital Management, Angelo Gordon & Co. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. The FCC's staff issued the waivers of its so-called cross-ownership rules, which restrict newspapers from combining with television and radio stations in the same market.

Peter Liguori, the television executive formerly known as Mr. FX, faced television critics for the first time as Fox's president of entertainment on Thursday, and the topics could have ranged from the relative lack of reality programming on the fall schedule to the pressures of heading the No. 1 network among younger viewers, to whether he could transfer his sophisticated programming sensibility from cable to broadcast. But, alas, that would be really boring.

Tribune Co. named veteran TV station executive Larry Wert as president of local broadcasting, overseeing the company's 23 television stations and WGN Radio in Chicago. Wert, 56, currently is a prominent executive in NBCUniversal's television station group; serving as general manager of NBC's Chicago station since 1998. He had responsiblity for five stations, including KNBC-TV Channel 4 in Los Angeles, KNSD-TV Channel 7 in San Diego as well as WMAQ-TV Channel 5 in Chicago, from 2008 to 2011, when he became executive vice president of station initiatives.

Tribune Co. has named Edward Lazarus, a former high-ranking Federal Communications Commission official and one-time federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, as its executive vice president and general counsel. Lazarus, 53, is the first key hire for Tribune's new chief executive Peter Liguori, who took office this month. Tribune, parent company of the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and KTLA-TV Channel 5, emerged from protracted bankruptcy proceedings Dec. 31 with new ownership and plans to redefine the Chicago-based company's leadership and direction.

Tribune Co. has hired investment bankers to advise the media company on the sale of its newspaper publishing unit, according to a source familiar with the matter. The company has retained JPMorgan Chase & Co. to oversee a potential sale of the division that includes the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, according to the person. Evercore Partners, a boutique investment bank, reportedly also has been hired. There has been widespread speculation that Tribune would attempt to unload the newspaper business to focus on its more promising television operations.

WASHINGTON - Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles), expressing concern about the future of the Los Angeles Times, is asking Tribune Co. executives to explain the company's move to spin off its newspaper operations into a separate company. "I am concerned that corporate actions the Tribune Co. is taking may not be in the best interests of the Los Angeles Times," Waxman said in a letter to Peter Liguori, Tribune's chief executive. The company last week filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission as a preliminary step toward establishing the newspaper unit, to be called Tribune Publishing Co. The newspaper unit will pay the parent company an undetermined cash dividend, funded through borrowing, according to the filing.

WASHINGTON - Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles), expressing concern about the future of the Los Angeles Times, is asking Tribune Co. executives to explain the company's move to spin off its newspaper operations into a separate company. "I am concerned that corporate actions the Tribune Co. is taking may not be in the best interests of the Los Angeles Times," Waxman said in a letter to Peter Liguori, Tribune's chief executive. The company last week filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission as a preliminary step toward establishing the newspaper unit, to be called Tribune Publishing Co. The newspaper unit will pay the parent company an undetermined cash dividend, funded through borrowing, according to the filing.

Tribune Co., the parent of the Los Angeles Times, unveiled a restructuring plan that will slash nearly 700 jobs over the next year. The 6% staff reduction will come primarily from the company's newspaper unit but will largely involve operations personnel rather than reporters and editors at its eight daily papers, Peter Liguori, Tribune's chief executive, said in an interview Wednesday. The restructuring is intended to help Tribune withstand the continuing decline in print advertising, which traditionally has been the lifeblood of the newspaper industry.

Tribune Co., the parent of the Los Angeles Times, reported that earnings tumbled in the second quarter as revenue dropped sharply in its broadcast division and advertising continued to decline at its newspapers. The media giant reported net income of $66.3 million in the three months that ended June 30, a 61.2% plunge from $170.8 million in the year-earlier period. Revenue slid 10.5% to $730.2 million, while pretax income skidded 39.7% to $110.4 million. Tribune continued to reduce costs, with operating expenses dropping $50 million to $640.6 million.

After announcing a plan to split its newspaper unit into a separate company, Tribune Co. is turning its attention to its real estate. The media company announced Tuesday the hiring of Murray McQueen to fill the newly created position of president of real estate. He will assess whether Tribune is making as much money as it can from its holdings, including its historic newspaper properties. “We have more than seven million square feet of space under management from coast to coast, including the historic Tribune Tower in Chicago and Times Mirror Square in Los Angeles,” Peter Liguori, Tribune's chief executive, wrote in a memo to employees.

With the planned spinoff of its newspaper unit underway, Tribune Co. is turning its attention to its real estate. The media company announced Tuesday the hiring of real estate veteran Murray McQueen to fill the newly created position of president of real estate. He will assess whether Tribune is making as much money as it can from its holdings, including the historic Los Angeles Times headquarters in downtown L.A. All told, the company owns more than 7 million square feet of real estate, including buildings, printing plants and other facilities.

In an effort to kick-start original television production, Tribune Co. has hired Matt Cherniss, a former Fox and Warner Bros. executive, as president of WGN America and head of a newly formed Tribune Studios. Cherniss will be responsible for strategy and day-to-day operations at both properties. He will spearhead efforts to create original content for Tribune's 23 television stations as well as cable channel WGN America. Tribune is seeking to establish a beachhead in Hollywood.

The new year represents a long-awaited new start for the Tribune Co. The newspaper and television conglomerate emerged from bankruptcy Monday, a financially stronger version of the company that sought court protection four years ago but one that still must grapple with the challenges bedeviling traditional media in the digital age. The exit from bankruptcy is a milestone for the parent of the Los Angeles Times. The company sought Bankruptcy Court protection in December 2008 after an $8.2 billion leveraged buyout by real estate magnate Sam Zell saddled the company with $12.9 billion in total debt just as advertising revenue was collapsing.

Tribune Co. announced plans Wednesday to spin off its beleaguered newspaper unit into a separate company, freeing the media conglomerate to focus on its more promising television and Internet properties. The new entity, to be called Tribune Publishing Co., would include the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune and six other daily papers. All other assets, including the company's real estate holdings and stakes in several Internet sites, would remain part of Tribune Co. The spinoff would be tax-free to Tribune shareholders and could take as long as a year to complete.